Tru Blue (Sexy standalone romance) (The Whiskeys: Dark Knights at Peaceful Harbor Book 1)

~~~~~5 AMAZING STARS ~~~~~ Wow, I didn't know anyone could be selfless but Melissa found the one man who I think could fit the bill. Truman or Tru if you were to look at him you might want to take a step back because of his appearance, but if you were to get to know him, you would find out that he is one of the most loving and caring man you would ever meet. When Tru was younger he went to jail for a murder he did not commit. His younger brother did. He was not supposed to go to jail and he would be able to still protect his brother, but, their bitch of a mother had him put away. For six years Tru served in jail. When he got out he tried to find his brother who had ended up like their mother hooked on drugs. His brother was so high he told him to go to hell. Then he went underground until a night that Tru will never forget. When his phone rang six months out of prison. He let it ring not answering it and on the third time it started to ring he thought something might be wrong so he answered and it changed his life forever. Their mother was unresponsive. When Tru got to the address Quincy gave him he went inside after listening to all of the screaming. His gut twisted inside but he went anyway. When he was inside his brother told him that she had died. The screaming he found out was a little girl and a baby. He asked if they were Quincy's but he said no they were their moms. Tru ran over picking them up to quiet them down. They were filthy and had on dirty diapers. He could not believe the condition they were living in. Quincy told them they were born on the streets no birth certificates. Tru asked him how he could let them live like this and until he wanted to get cleaned up and off the drugs not to come near the kids again. He stormed out after grabbing some diapers and a nasty smelling blanket. When he got home he washed them up and put them on one of his shirts, then went to the store to get them somethings they would need. When he was decided what kind of diapers and formula to get he noticed a nice looking woman checking them out. She come over to help and she was a blessing. Helping him get all of the things he would need. She kept asking questions he was not ready to answer. Gemma was a woman who wanted love. She wanted to be loved and to have children of her own. But, that would never happen for her, well the having kids part anyway. She grew up in an environment where everything was loveless. She was taken care of by nannies. She was in her own kind of prison. Now she give little girls one day to be what ever they want with her princess for a day business. Gemma and Tru shared something at the store and she could not get him out of her mind. She stopped by to drop off her car and to see the babies. She wanted to see how he was settling in with them. The more they talked the more she liked him. As time went on they were very hot and heavy for each other and falling for each other, but being the guy Tru is before he could go all the way with her he had to tell her the truth. Well, the truth that he told everyone, that he was in prison for murder. After he told her she ran away crying. He wanted her in their lives she made things better for him and for the kids, but like his friends said he might never see her again. He sent her pictures that he had drawn of his past with little notes. He didn't want to give up. Crystal (Gemma's best friend) noticed something was up and did what she had to do to get it out of her. After Gemma told her what happened Crystal tried to tell her that he did what anyone would do if faced with that. After a few more days Gemma could not get him or the kids out of his mind. She went to see him. Let's just say things get heated and not in a bad way. Their bond they formed is so special and so loving. You will be brought into the story that you will not want to ever get out of it. I don't want to spill all of the juicy details or how it ended. I want you to read the book so you can see what an amazing story it really is and I am so looking forward to the rest of the gang finding their true love as well. Melissa Foster never disappoints. All of her books are amazing and I am happy to say she is one of my favorite authors. I encourage you to read any and all of her books. Does Tru and Gemma get their happy ever after? Does he get to keep the kids? What happens with Quincy? Those are things you will find out when you read it. Until Next Time: Happy Reading.

Tru Blue, book one in The Whiskeys: Dark Knights at Peaceful Harbor, is the first book I have read by Melissa Foster. It won't be the last! Tru Blue, a story about two lovers finding each other despite being from different sides of the track, reads like a Hallmark movie, with themes of blood versus found family, putting family first, and love conquers all. Melissa Foster brought lots of emotions to her writing. Be sure to have tissues handy! Yet, when it came to romance and love--WOW! Melissa didn't hesitate to bring the heat! Definitely had tingles and goosebumps from Melissa's passionate, intense, and fiery love scenes! Melissa Foster's wordcraft is second to none! Both the main protagonists and the support characters were easy to relate to, and I wanted to squeeze the motorcycle-riding Whiskey brothers, like they were great big teddy bears, not hardcore, Alpha baddies! Melissa Foster did a fantastic job in creating complex, three-dimensional characters. Each character was a perfect fit for their role in the scene—a testimony to Melissa Foster's writing talent. If you haven't done so, download Melissa Foster's Tru Blue. It is well worth the time and money!

I am already having Tru Blue withdrawals!! This is positively a must read!! Melissa Foster truly outdid herself! Taking a step away from her regular series in my opinion produced one of the best books she has ever written!! What a beautiful, courageous and gut wrenching love story. More than just a love story between a man and a woman, a love story about family and putting others needs before your own! Truman Gritt is just simply amazing. The things this man has endured in his lifetime are things no one should ever have to go through. His courage to carry on through it all is nothing short of astonishing. It is amazing that he can even be such a sweet, caring, gentle man after everything but he is that and so much more. He is a protector and always has been. The immediate responsibility he takes and the care and love he shows for his baby brother and sister, Lincoln and Kennedy, that he didn’t even know existed is just awe-inspiring and selfless. He meets Gemma who immediately comes to his rescue in the store to help him get everything he needs to care for them. He is a bit taken aback by her at first but she winds her way around his heart. They end up having an all consuming attraction to each other and are so very hot together but it is so much more than that. He never had a real childhood and neither did Gemma. One of my favorite scenes in the book is the pretend game they play about how they knew each other when they were teens. It was such a great scene. My favorite quote from the book and there are many was when Tru says to Gemma; “You’re everything I always thought life should be. “ Swoon!!!!! Such a fantastic book Melissa, I am just very sad to be done reading it.

I wish I could give more than 5 stars. This book was beautiful. Truman Gritt has been a protector and a family man as long as he can remember. Throughout his awful childhood, he was often left in charge of caring for his younger brother Quincy and he truly did everything he could to protect his little brother and to try and prevent him from ending up like their mother. Truman’s heart was always in the right place, but sometimes his choices came with consequences he hadn’t anticipated. He has just finished serving time in prison and shortly after his release he gets a desperate phone call from Quincy. Despite his trepidations, Truman being the loyal, loving man that he is, drops everything to go and help Quincy and his mom. When he finds his Mom pulseless in a crack house and his brother high as a kite, he isn’t very surprised. However who he finds with them catches him completely off guard and changes his life forever. Without a second thought, Truman rescues his infant and toddler siblings from the filth and poverty they’ve been suffering in and despite knowing next to nothing about very young children, he immediately sets out to provide a better life for them. Gemma Wright has also had a very loveless upbringing, but hers was the type with cold parents, hired help and etiquette classes. All she has ever wanted in her life is to feel loved and to be loved. When Gemma comes to Truman’s rescue in the baby department at Walmart and helps him get the necessities for his first night on Daddy Duty, Truman is reluctant to accept the help, but his desperation overrules his pride. As Truman adjusts to being tossed into the deep end of parenting overnight, Gemma finds herself falling more and more for the man who would do anything for those he loved. This is the type of love Gemma has been lacking her whole life and she is ready to embrace it wholeheartedly, despite Truman’s concerns and caution. I can tell you that reading about Truman taking care of his siblings will absolute melt your heart. There are so many sweet moments in this book, I couldn’t choose one to quote, but for all of the light in this story there is definitely darkness too. There is also an extremely sexy and steamy love story in the midst of the chaos. Is Truman and Gemma’s love strong enough to overcome the devastation from their pasts to piece together a happy future for their new little family? Highly recommend reading this book. Heartbreaking, poignant, sweet, sexy and hopeful. Just a wonderful read. Eskimo kisses forever! I can’t wait to read about the Whiskey family in the next books. They played such an important supporting role in Truman’s life and really prove the point that family is not just blood.

I have the Kindle and Audible versions; but just listened to the book so I can't speak to editing/proofreading issues. I've been wanting to read this series for quite a while. Truman and Gemma seem an unlikely pair that make perfect sense once you get to know them. They have chemistry and they work out problems together. For the most part, it's a very good story. That said, some of it was so melodramatic, it was like a soap opera. Bottom line: I enjoyed it enough to continue with the series.

Truman returned home after spending six years in jail for a crime he didn't commit. He's adjusting his life to normal when his brother calls him asking for his help, Tru can't ignore his own brother and he's dragged again to a world of addiction and horror to find his mother dead, his brother high as a kite and his two younger brothers living surrounded by crack and filth. His protective instincts kick in, because he can't allow history to repeat itself, and he takes responsibility for his younger brothers moving both of them home with him. Tru is suddenly a single parent struggling to fulfill the physical and emotional needs of a baby and a toddler and even though he's got a group of loyal friends that have his back, he knows his life will change forever, still he embraces his new responsibilities with an amazing selflessness and an overwhelming love for his siblings. Gemma lived a shielded childhood, her parents were very rich and she was raised surrounded by nannies in a gilded cage. She had no freedom, her mother was always listing her flaws and she never felt loved while growing up. There was also a tragedy in her life that shaped her childhood and her relationship with her mother got even more distant. Gemma has her own shop, dedicated to children and their fantasies like dressing up as a princess or a fairy for a day. She approaches Tru when she sees him for the first time with his baby brother and his toddler sister buying too many diapers and formulas. I loved, loved, loved Tru! His love for his siblings made me smile a lot and his feelings, hopes and worries kept tugging at my heart. I didn't quite connect so much to Gemma, she was a little pushy and some of her questions were a bit annoying especially when Tru was explaining his past (I think maybe I felt this way because I loved Truman so much!). The story's fast paced and even though it wasn't rushed, I think some of the conflicts should last a little longer exactly because of the story's darker tone (drug addiction, abandonment, single parenting). Tru Blue is an emotional read, a little darker and grittier than Melissa's other books. Beautifully written, it's a story about hope, love, second chances, family, friendship and loyalty. If you love romance and you're looking for a new book boyfriend, I highly recommend it because you'll definitely fall in love with Tru.

Do you guys know the feeling; when you start reading a book and it’s just so good that you have to read it really slow because you don’t want to miss a thing? This is the way I felt while I was reading Tru Blue. I read it really, really slowly and I took every word to my heart. I am blown away by the beauty of this story! Trumann is a mechanic, who has been living in Peaceful Harbor since he was released from prison, where he has been for the last six years for a murder he did not commit. He is enjoying his freedom to do whatever he wants, and he has his steady job. His life is turned upside down when his mother overdoses and he discovers that he has a baby brother and a toddler sister. He wants to give them a better upbringing than what he had, and he takes them with him. When he, in the middle of the night, is out shopping for the new addition to his family he meets Gemma. Gemma is a young woman who has a princess shop in Peaceful Harbor, and she absolutely adores children. By the cruel touch of fate, she will never be able to give birth to any children of her own, though. When she sees Trumann, looking lost, in the shop with two small children her heart melts and she just has to help him. And this is how Gemma and Trumann meet each other, and the story begins. When I started reading this book, I had a clear vision up in my head of what to expect from it. It was going to be; boy meets girl, and they fall in love, and everything ends perfect, but once again I must confess that Mrs. Foster surprises me with her writing and how she can create characters that just touches my heart in a way that leaves me breathless. Trumann is a young man, who has had a terrible upbringing, and who was left to his own devices. But he has a very strong sense of loyalty to his family, and he will do anything to help, never thinking of himself and his own happiness. Gemma was brought up in a rich environment, but she never felt the love of her parents and all the restrictions she was put under left her to create a fantasy world full of fairy tales. When she was old enough, she packed up her things and left. The problem is that even though she is living her life the way she wants to, something inside her still wants to please her mother, and she still seeks acceptance from her. Melissa Foster describes the relationship both Gemma and Trumann has to their families just brilliantly and their struggle to come to terms with accepting their childhood is just heartbreaking. The whole universe that Mrs. Foster creates around the young family is brilliant, and she makes me want to hear all the supporting character’s story as well. Let me tell you this; she writes the most adorable children, and she makes me want to move to Peaceful Harbor right away! The love between Gemma and Trumann is so beautiful, and I don’t think I have read such a sensitive story since the last time I read a Melissa Foster book. I’m in love with Melissa Foster, and I don’t know if I should be upset or happy because she is on her way to ruin me for all other authors. Thanks to the author and Beck Valley Book tours for this absolutely brilliant advanced copy.

I have to start by saying that I love Melissa Foster!! She's an amazing story teller, whether it's dramatic or a rom-com. And this book was no different! It was an amazing telling of a difficult situation involving 2 very strong characters. And she did it justice!! Gemma is an amazing heroine, whether she thinks so or not. She was brought up in a wealthy, sterile environment that was almost completely void of love. Yet, she is one of the most loving people around. She hopes for a life completely different from the one she had to endure as a child and is willing to go after it with all her heart. Truman has had a horrible life due to his drug addicted mother. She put drugs and the pursuit of them ahead of everything, including her children. Truman grew up trying to protect his family, which eventually included his younger brother Quincy. When Quincy kills a man who is raping his mother at the age of 13, Truman steps in and takes the heat for it. Again, to try to protect his family. He winds up serving 6 years in prison for a crime he didn't commit, but he did it thinking it was the right thing to do.Unfortunately, when he gets out, his mother OD's and he finds out that he also has a toddler baby sister and an infant brother living in a crack house. He takes them vowing that they won't live like he did. This is where his and Gemma's lives cross. And nothing is the same for either one of them again!! The chemistry between these 2 is off the charts!! Truman fights it thinking he's not good enough for her and that she'll leave when she finds out about his conviction. Luckily, Gemma is strong enough for the both of them and fights for what she wants. Which is Truman and his kids. I loved their relationship because it was real. They dealt with problems head on and talked to each other, rather then avoiding issues. They were truthful with each other and respected each other and their relationship. They had a lot to deal with along the way, but they faced it all together!! I'm also so proud of Gemma for finally dealing with her mother the way she should have a long time ago!!! The supporting characters were amazing and I can't wait to read their books now!!! Overall, this was a wonderful book that I highly recommend to everyone!!! You won't be disappointed!!!